A Missouri woman indicted on federal charges for fraudulently using an history on MySpace and posing as a teenage boy pled not guilty on Thursday. Lori Drew’s alleged shenanigans led to the suicide of 13-year-old Megan Meier. Megan killed herself after the “boy” who feigned romantic interest in Meier later spurned her and told her, among other things, that the world would be a better place without her.

Drew, 49, of O’Fallon, Mo., was named in a four-count indictment returned in May by a federal grand jury. The indictment charges one count of conspiracy and three counts of accessing protected computers without authorization to obtain data to inflict emotional distress.

A Deadly Conspiracy

The indictment alleges that Drew, along with others, registered as a member of MySpace under the name “Josh Evans.” Drew and her co-conspirators next used the Josh Evans detail to contact Megan and began what the girl believed was an online romance with a 16-year-old boy.

In taking those actions, the indictment alleges, Drew and her co-conspirators violated MySpace’s terms of service that prohibit users from using forged registration knowledge, using accounts to obtain personal data about juvenile members, and using the MySpace communication services to harass, abuse or harm other members.

After approximately four weeks of flirtations amoung “Josh Evans” and Megan, Drew and her co-conspirators broke off the relationship. Within an hour, Megan hanged herself in her room. She died the next day.

Conflicting Sworn Statements

Parry Aftab, a defense, privacy and cyberspace attorney and executive director of WiredSafety.org, an online safety and educational site, is not surprised that Drew plead not guilty considering that’s a typical move at that phase of a case unless the defendant has cut a deal with prosecutors. Drew, Aftab said, has been protesting her involvement in the case recently. But her previous testimony may belie her.

“All…

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